The Biology of Acinetobacter : Taxonomy, Clinical Importance, Molecular Biology, Physiology, Industrial Relevance

The 1st International Workshop on Acinetobacter was held on 6th September, 1986, in Manchester, England, in association with the 14th International Congress of Microbiology. That occasion was so well attended and productive that there were soon discussions about how, when and where the next meeting should be held. This time, however, there was sufficient confidence to think of a more substantial meeting and to plan for the proceedings to be published. It emerged that there was wide agreement that the time was ripe to take stock of the entire biology of Acinetobacter: its occurrence and taxonomy; its molecular biology, biochemistry and physiology; its clinical importance and its industrial and commercial applications. The 2nd International Workshop on Acinetobacter took place from 6th to 7th September, 1990, at the Institut Pasteur, Paris, and was sponsored by the Federation of European Microbiological Societies. There were about 100 participants from 19 countries. The backbone of the meeting consisted of 23 plenary lectures. There were 28 posters and the meeting closed with a general discussion which went on long after the official finishing time despite all the counter-attractions of a sunny Parisian Friday afternoon. Indeed discussions continued while cruising along the Seine and while dining at the top of the Tour Montparnasse. However, the vitality and usefulness of even the most successful meeting is difficult to transmit by the printed word. Front Matter....Pages i-ix Acinetobacter : Portrait of a Genus....Pages 1-24 Taxonomy of Acinetobacter ....Pages 25-36 Typing of Acinetobacter ....Pages 37-51 Hospital Epidemiology of Acinetobacter Infection....Pages 53-62 Epidemiology of Acinetobacter Strains Isolated from Nosocomial Infections in France....Pages 63-68 Molecular Epidemiological Analysis of Nosocomial Acinetobacter Baumannii Isolates....Pages 69-76 Factors Influencing the Virulence of Acinetobacter ....Pages 77-82 Antibiotic Resistance Mechanisms in Acinetobacter ....Pages 83-115 The Chromosomal β-Lactamases of the Genus Acinetobacter : Enzymes Which Challenge our Imagination....Pages 117-132 The use of Molecular Techniques for the Location and Characterisation of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Clinical Isolates of Acinetobacter ....Pages 133-148 Plasmid and Transposon Behaviour in Acinetobacter ....Pages 149-167 Plasmid Stability and the Expression and Regulation of a Marker Gene in Acinetobacter and other Gram-Negative Hosts....Pages 169-181 Random Insertional Mutagenesis in Acinetobacter ....Pages 183-189 Genetic Organisation of Acinetobacter ....Pages 191-200 Evolution of Genes for the β-Ketoadipate Pathway in Acinetobacter Calcoaceticus ....Pages 201-237 Organisation, Potential Regulatory Elements and Evolution of trp Genes in Acinetobacter ....Pages 239-249 Codon Usage in Acinetobacter Structural Genes....Pages 251-257 The Outer Membrane of Acinetobacter : Structure-Function Relationships....Pages 259-271 Energy Reserves in Acinetobacter ....Pages 273-294 Energy Generation and the Glucose Dehydrogenase Pathway in Acinetobacter ....Pages 295-312 Acinetobacter - Citric Acid Cyclist with a Difference....Pages 313-322 Metabolism of Alkanes by Acinetobacter ....Pages 323-350 Metabolism of Aromatic Compounds by Acinetobacter ....Pages 351-390 Metabolism of Cyclohexane and Related Alicyclic Compounds by Acinetobacter ....Pages 391-402 Metabolism of Trimethylammonium Compounds by Acinetobacter ....Pages 403-410 Applications of Acinetobacter as an Industrial Microorganism....Pages 411-441 Back Matter....Pages 443-451 Based on the proceedings of a symposium held under the auspices of the Federation of European Microbiological Societies, in Paris, France, September 6-7, 1990